By Bob Wason and Rob Dotterer
Staff Writers
The 41st annual Greek Fest in coming up fast, and students around Jamesville-DeWitt High School are getting excited. The festival begins Thursday, June 5 and ends Sunday, June 8 at St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Church (325 Waring Road). Thursday and Friday start at 5 pm, while Saturday and Sunday starting at noon. On Saturday, it goes until 10 pm, and Sunday will end early at 4 pm. The festival has Greek music and dancing, and traditional Greek foods such as baklava, lamb souvlaki, and loukoumades, which are better known as honey puffs.
“I love the Greek Fest,” said junior Patrick Saba; “there is great food and great music.” Freshman Colby Curtis also is a fan of the festival: “Greek food is the best. I love eating the honey buns and the gyros. Also, the music is great.” Freshman Kaillee Philleo likes the Greek Fest for a different reason; “I like being able to watch the Greek dancing and hanging out with my friends.” Freshman Rachel Kaprielov agrees with Philleo, “I love the experience of the different culture and the different dresses of different parts of Greece.”
Some students at J-DHS are just going for the food; “I could easily eat five of the gyros that are there,” said junior Matt Schunck; “they are just so good.” Senior Brian Kelner shared the views of Schunck; “All the food is good, but by far the best are the gyros. I recommend them to everyone who hasn’t tried them.”
Gyros aren’t the only food that draws people into the festival. “The honey puffs are the best food I’ve ever had,” said junior Hillel Matasar; “the sweet taste of the pastry is the greatest thing ever.” Sophomore Rosario Digristina agrees with Matasar. “I like almost everything there, but the honey puffs are my favorite. I bet I could eat 100 of those,” said Digristina.
Along with the food, the music and dancing is always a big draw for the festival. “I always go to the Greek Fest to be able to dance and listen to the Greek music,” said junior Lexi Hale; “it’s also really fun to see some kids from J-DHS dancing in the festival.”
One of those students who is a dancer is junior Lucas Tzivanis. “I’ve been dancing at the Greek Fest each year for a while now. It’s so fun to put on my costume and go do the dancing,” he said. Another student who dances is junior Nick Koulouris. “Lucas and I always have fun dancing together at the festival. I hope a lot of people come to the Greek Fest to enjoy the food and culture, and see me dancing,” said Koulouris. Both Tzivanis and Koulouris will be dancing each night.
Whether you’re looking for good food, Greek music and dancing, or just a lesson in Greek culture, the Greek Fest is the place for you.